New Leaf vs. New Horizons

[NauticalSquid]

Many veteran players prefer New Leaf for multiple reasons, and ive noticed there seems to be a debate over this. Thoughts?

 

[oath2order]

I do prefer New Leaf, for one major reason: I like the way furniture series (https://nookipedia.com/wiki/Series) are made up as opposed to the unorganized mess in NH. I miss the GracieGrace series, especially the Gorgeous Series and also the Modern Wood.

 

[NauticalSquid]

I do prefer New Leaf, for one major reason: I like the way furniture series (https://nookipedia.com/wiki/Series) are made up as opposed to the unorganized mess in NH. I miss the GracieGrace series, especially the Gorgeous Series and also the Modern Wood.

Agreed. I miss the GracieGrace series a lot as well. And yes, the Gorgeous series is one of the best sets in animal crossing imo.

 

[Xara]

as much as both games are equally special to me, i honestly had more fun with new leaf. it wasn’t my first animal crossing game, but it was the game that got me into the series the most. i still remember how revolutionary watching the trailer for it felt, and how excited i was to take on the role of mayor, characters being taller, hamster and deer villagers etc. my only complaints about new leaf are that villagers could move away without permission, you couldn’t relocate buildings, and you couldn’t choose where buildings went (aside from the roost, and excluding plot resetting; that process was so ass). maybe it’s because i’m older now, but new leaf felt much more lively and community-focused than new horizons did. new horizons has stunning graphics and is so fun as well, but it feels like it revolves around decorating so much that it just kinda feels like a more advanced version of happy home designer. it feels like there’s less to do than there was in new leaf, and it didn’t keep me playing for as long; i played new leaf without getting bored for 3 years even before the welcome amiibo update, whereas i was bored of new horizons in less than a year. i still play, but only for a few weeks at a time before getting bored again :/

i’m so grateful to new horizons for helping me through the pandemic and other struggles, as well as bringing me back to tbt after my hiatus and introducing me to so many lovely people, but it feels like nintendo spent so much of the game’s development focusing on the graphics, terraforming, and decorating that they kind of dropped the ball on… everything else. i still love new horizons, but i miss all of the npcs from new leaf, all of the tiny details (ex. the campsite tent turning into an igloo during the winter months, your character shivering if you go diving during winter), the post office, graciegrace, all of the small events, tortimer island and its mini-games, working part-time at the roost, main street and getting to see past villagers there, the sense of community etc.

 

[Meadows]

New leaf had better furniture sets, more exciting holidays and events, a lot more content and Better music. And even though town decorating wasn't the best, I looked forward to see what people came up with the limitations. New horizons I couldn't care less, as usually people make a maze and crowd areas.

I will say though, I do like that I can move houses wherever I want and villagers won't leave in new horizons.

 

[Hypno KK]

I like a lot of things about NH but I honestly prefer NL and still play it.

 

[Drawdler]

I knew NL was the consensus, but damn, that’s a huge discrepancy. I’m only the second NH voter here! I also think this section doesn’t draw as many of the new players who might prefer NH.

I’ve been playing since Wild World came out, and I honestly feel I can find more to do in NH. They expanded on the initiatives, sidelined PWPs for much deeper customisation in terraforming and outdoor decorating, and took other steps forward in QoL. I think the issue comes from what people value, which is totally fair. I love doing that stuff, but if you care more about events or progression then NL has more to do, plus they did just remove stuff like the tours without any good equivalent in NH.

I really like New Leaf, it’s an extremely good game but when I turn it on I miss a lot of things from NH. Mind you I’m also tired of NH at this point, and going back to NL for a break. The limitations in NL do give a different type of attachment to your town (I say different because after putting so much thought into all the design of my NH island, I feel incredibly attached to it), and the dialogue and characters available are straight-up superior in NL.

Furniture is a tossup for me because while NL has so much more furniture, you can do more with inidividual pieces in NH- then again it also makes a great room in NL extra-impressive. Also, collecting items is more fun in NL, whereas in NH the vast vast majority are either from random DIYs or in the store randomly, making them feel insignificant. Plus in NL the sheer number of items leaves more to discover, so I guess I’ll give an edge to NL with furniture. I will say though the items truly look incredible in NH, and obviously they would have improved it since the Switch is much more powerful but NH truly looks gorgeous.

And yeah, some stuff in NH does just make the game too controllable, less escapist and more gamey. However stuff like the random plot placements as well as some PWP limitations made me quit NL in the first place years ago and are unreasonably annoying. There are objective improvements like a lot of stuff auto-stacking and enormous storage. This is more personal but also, the game’s approach to gender is extremely dated, and while I’m Caucasian it also sucks that NL doesn’t even have options for skin tones.

Uh. Honestly there are too many metrics. For me one of the main things it comes down to is that when the stores are closed, there’s not much to do in NL. As someone who often stays awake at night that kinda sucks for me. The Miles goals and decorating are enough to entertain me at night, and set my own goals. But that’s me. Not expecting anything but really wish the next game could have some sort of schedule adjustment for true night towns.

 

[Sara?]

i just really miss working at the coffee shop and also taken the dandelion floçwers before they bloom so that i could blow them away, having a change of fiding 3 and 4 leaf clovers..... Dunno i really loved the small interactive details, i really like NH but i wished they hadnt forgotten the small details

 

[MiniPocketWorld]

Since Nintendo added to New Horizons, which made it feel more complete, I prefer it for a number of reasons opposed to New Leaf.
Villagers not randomly moving away is a big one, villagers not randomly plopped, being able to move buildings, decorating outside, decorating villager houses, graphics, more detailed, sound effects, more detailed, the new villagers, terraforming which is a half curse, the DLC, new npcs, new flowers...

There are things about New Leaf that I wish wasn't scrapped though.
But New Horizons did address the biggest wishes of New Leaf when it came to villagers and decorating outside. New Horizons does have more villager dialog variety, but for some reason it doesn't feel like it.

 

[Millysaurusrexjr]

New Horizons... the graphics and new additions (placing furniture outside, terraforming, etc) are crucial to me. I do miss New Leaf something fierce, though. Especially the music!

 

[Biyaya]

I voted for New Leaf on a whim, because I played it more. I haven’t gotten as much of an opportunity to play New Horizons due to a major life stage change, but I did enjoy it, especially since it gave me an opportunity to spend time with old friends and acquaintances. I love being able to decorate outside too. New Leaf was the first game I played that got me back into gaming after a previous life stage influenced hiatus. It is also what got me to join TBT with its amiibo update. New Leaf also kept me company after my stressful shifts while I waited forever to carpool home

 

[Romaki]

I prefer New Horizons on terraforming alone. It's flawed, but so much more fun.

But New Leaf is just the better experience. Having multiple shop updates and making players wait 30+ days inbetween makes more fun in the longterm. Nintendo really dropped the ball with zero progression after unlocking K.K. We got a couple of updates that were fun, but now it's just dead.

I hope the next main title is even more Minecraft adjacent but also more patient with unlocks.

 

[KCourtnee]

I will always prefer the older games. NH just doesn't feel like Animal Crossing to me. At all.

 

[KittenNoir]

Although I like certain features that are in New Leaf my vote is for New Horizons as they graphics are obviously a whole nicer.

 

[Mokuren]

I really like NH more. NL is too limited when it comes to decorating. The furniture outside placing is a real game changer for me and I couldn't without it. Also the graphic of NL is so outdated now!

 

[Freya_Druid]

The thing I both love and hate about NH is how much easier everything is. Like you have almost total control of island layout with terraforming and the ability to relocate villagers, you can straight clone flowers, things like that. But I still prefer NL because it isn’t built on a subscription service, the furniture series make so much more sense, and it’s just more nostalgic to me.

 

[Seastar]

I wish there was a combination of both games because there's things in New Leaf that I wish they kept in New Horizons (Missing furniture/clothing, Nintendo villagers, minigames, missing fruit, etc.) but there are features in New Horizons that I much prefer over New Leaf's (Not having to constantly stress over villager move outs/ins, removing the extremely unnecessary tanning feature for something easier, etc.).

 

[Darkesque_]

Overall, I’d have to say New Leaf. I love the aspect of taking over Tortimer’s job, enacting ordinances, placing PWPs, Club Tortimer, the shops, and especially the furniture sets and customizations. I feel like if New Leaf had the same graphics as New Horizons, and being able to place furniture outside, I feel like I would only play New Leaf at that point!

 

[CrossingVibes]

I'd prefer New Leaf, since it has a lot more content. New Horizons has better graphics, but I just think New Leaf is better for a ton of reasons!

 

[Yoshi155]

I like both games, but I prefer New Leaf a lot more. There's so many things I can say about it. New Horizons obviously has better graphics and better customization and decoration, but I just love New Leaf so much.